US MARKETS:

-S&P 500 futures down 0.3% to 2,786.50
-Brent futures down 0.9% to $65.80/bbl
-Gold spot up 0.4% to $1,324.87
-US Dollar Index down 0.2% to 95.98

GLOBAL NEWS:

Earnings season. CIBC, Autodesk, Dell Technologies, Marriott, and VMware are among companies due to report earnings.

Tesla borrows. The company is sourcing approximately $2 billion in loans to build its factory in Shanghai, according to equity research firm JL Warren Capital. Four banks are allegedly supporting the US car manufacturer, Shanghai Pudong Development Bank, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, China Construction Bank and Agricultural Bank of China.

BA chooses Boeing. The IAG group has signed a purchase commitment for British Airways for 18 Boeing 777-9 and 24 options, which will replace its oldest wide-body aircraft, mainly the 747, at an indefinite date. The order announced on February 28, 2019 is worth $18.6 billion.

Rolls-Royce shares drop. Shares of Rolls-Royce tumbled after it announced on Thursday its withdrawal from the race to equip Boeing's future mid-range aircraft. It said it is unable to keep up with the planned schedule, after reporting an operating loss of £1.16 billion in 2018, linked to issues with its Trent engines.

Danske bank scandal spreads. After Nordea and Danske Bank, the Swedish bank Swedbank is also being accused of laundering money via the Baltic countries. Nordea and Danske Bank are bogged down in a huge €200 billion money laundering case through its Estonian subsidiary.

Citron Research loses appeal. A Hong Kong court has dismissed short-seller Citron Research’s second attempt to overturn a punishment for market misconduct. In 2016, Andrew Left, the founder of Citron, was barred from trading in Hong Kong securities for five years and ordered to pay $210,000 after publishing a research report saying that Chinese company Evergrande was insolvent and had defrauded investors. After the report, Evergrande's shares dropped by around 20 percent.